By Zak Vescera, The Tyee, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Susan MacRae wants to talk about what happened to her, but she can’t.
As a young girl, MacRae signed a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) that prohibits her from discussing sexual abuse she suffered, even with family members or therapists.
Continue reading Greens Take Lead to Stop NDAs from Silencing VictimsBy Zak Vescera, The Tyee, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Lawyers working for the B.C. government say they’re willing to strike to win the right to form their own union after negotiations with the province broke down last week.
BC Government Lawyers Association president Gareth Morley said two weeks of private talks couldn’t end the impasse between lawyers, who want to form their own union, and the government, which wants most of the association’s members to join an existing union.
Continue reading BC’s Negotiations with Government Lawyers Collapse
By Zak Vescera, The Tyee, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
B.C. businesses are hiring a record number of temporary foreign workers as they struggle to fill jobs.
The latest federal data show there were more than 32,200 people in B.C. under the federal government’s Temporary Foreign Worker Program at the end of 2022, more than Ontario, which has more than twice B.C.’s population.
Continue reading Temporary Foreign Workers Hit Record Levels in BCBy Zak Vescera, The Tyee, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
The B.C. dockworkers’ union wants the federal government to block the $3.5-billion Roberts Bank container port project to protect members’ jobs.
The International Longshore and Warehouse Union says the port expansion will introduce technology and automation and set the stage for job losses at other West Coast ports.
Continue reading Union Fears Robots Will Kill Jobs in Controversial Port ExpansionBy Zak Vescera, The Tyee, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Troy Pearson had never wanted a job on land. On Feb. 10, 2021, he got up early to make a big breakfast for his wife, Judy Carlick-Pearson, and their 11-year-old son who had an 8 a.m. hockey practice in Prince Rupert.
Pearson worked on tugboats at Wainwright Marine, a tug and barge company in nearby Kitimat. He had been on the water since he was a 10-year-old on his dad’s fishing boat, but Carlick-Pearson said safety problems at work were keeping him up at night. “He didn’t feel safe,” she said.
Continue reading Death on the Coast: A Stormy Night, a Missing Tugboat
